Education · Sub-Saharan Africa · Lower-middle income
Namibia: education in numbers
Pre-primary enrolment is 36.5% (2021), 129th of 176 in the world and 13th of 39 in Sub-Saharan Africa. Primary enrolment is 120.7% (2024), 11th of 191 in the world and 5th of 41 in Sub-Saharan Africa. Primary completion is 88.6% (2024), 117th of 168 in the world and 9th of 36 in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Pre-primary enrolment
NamibiaSub-Saharan AfricaLower-middle incomeWorld
Primary enrolment
NamibiaSub-Saharan AfricaLower-middle incomeWorld
12 indicators
Education: Namibia in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Sub-Saharan Africa; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolmentPre-primary enrolment, % gross | 36.5%2021 | 129/176 | 13/39 | 40.8%2001 | 8.4% | 34.7% | +23.5 ppsince 2011 | 28.1% | 58.5% | 60.9% | |
| Primary enrolmentPrimary school enrolment, % gross | 120.7%2024 | 11/191 | 5/41 | 113.9% | 118.1% | 122.3% | −2.0 ppsince 2014 | 97.1% | 105.4% | 102.2% | |
| Primary completionPrimary completion rate, % of age group | 88.6%2024 | 117/168 | 9/36 | 95.3% | 90.2% | 97.7% | −2.7 ppsince 2014 | 68.9% | 88.0% | 88.0% | |
| Secondary enrolmentSecondary school enrolment, % gross | 82.0%2024 | 125/176 | 8/34 | 63.7% | 68.1% | 82.9% | +5.2 ppsince 2014 | 45.9% | 68.0% | 77.3% | |
| Lower secondary completionLower secondary completion rate, % of age group | 71.9%2024 | 125/168 | 7/34 | 56.2% | 58.8% | 91.5% | +4.5 ppsince 2014 | 44.4% | 73.7% | 77.9% | |
| Tertiary enrolmentTertiary enrolment, % gross | 26.1%2022 | 117/172 | 2/34 | 7.4%2001 | 16.9%2012 | 26.0% | +9.2 ppsince 2012 | 9.3% | 27.4% | 43.6% | |
| Out-of-school childrenChildren out of school, % of primary school age | 0.9%2024 | 138/178 | 35/38 | 11.1% | 4.9% | 1.1% | −0.3 ppsince 2014 | — | 8.3% | — | |
| Adult literacyAdult literacy rate, % of people 15+ | 87.6%2023 | 91/141 | 9/41 | 84.9%2001 | 88.3%2011 | 88.3%2018 | −0.6 ppsince 2011 | 68.7% | 78.3% | 87.7% | |
| Youth literacyYouth literacy rate, % of people 15–24 | 92.1%2023 | 105/148 | 11/42 | 89.4% | 94.4%2011 | 92.8%2018 | −2.0 ppsince 2013 | 79.0% | 91.9% | 93.1% | |
| Pupils per teacherPupils per teacher, primary | 25.12018 | 55/173 | 34/40 | 31.6 | 29.8 | 25.12018 | −15%since 2008 | 37.4 | 28.9 | 23.4 | |
| Education spendingPublic spending on education, % of GDP | 9.1%2024 | 4/184 | 1/43 | 6.9% | 8.2% | 9.3% | +5.4 ppsince 2014 | 3.3% | 3.4% | 3.6% | |
| Education, % of budgetEducation spending, % of government expenditure | 24.6%2025 | 5/179 | 3/42 | 21.9% | 26.1% | 24.9% | +2.0 ppsince 2015 | 15.4% | 13.6% | 14.0% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Pre-primary enrolment+23.5 pp36.5% in 2021
- Secondary enrolment+5.2 pp82.0% in 2024
- Lower secondary completion+4.5 pp71.9% in 2024
- Tertiary enrolment+9.2 pp26.1% in 2022
Worse than ten years ago
- Primary completion−2.7 pp88.6% in 2024
- Adult literacy−0.6 pp87.6% in 2023
- Youth literacy−2.0 pp92.1% in 2023
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Namibia and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Namibia. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Namibia | South Africa | Angola | Zambia | Botswana |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolment | 36.5%2021 | 17.5%2020 | 39.6%2016 | 8.7%2017 | 21.4%2015 |
| Primary enrolment | 120.7%2024 | 101.8%2023 | 86.7%2023 | 115.6%2024 | 109.3%2022 |
| Primary completion | 88.6%2024 | 95.3%2023 | 47.9%2023 | 81.8%2013 | 101.5%2022 |
| Secondary enrolment | 82.0%2024 | 104.1%2023 | 51.5%2023 | 56.8%2024 | 70.6%2021 |
| Lower secondary completion | 71.9%2024 | 88.3%2023 | 42.1%2023 | 55.3%2013 | 91.4%2022 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 26.1%2022 | 23.5%2023 | 10.0%2024 | 4.0%2012 | 21.4%2024 |
| Out-of-school children | 0.9%2024 | 6.1%2023 | 36.8%2023 | 3.5%2024 | 0.5%2022 |
| Adult literacy | 87.6%2023 | 91.2%2024 | 68.2%2023 | 71.8%2024 | — |
| Youth literacy | 92.1%2023 | 97.2%2024 | 80.7%2023 | 77.7%2024 | — |